Oscar Vai To'elau Kightley MNZM (born 14 September 1969) is a Samoan-born New Zealand actor, television presenter, writer, journalist, director, and comedian.
Biography from TMDB.
- September 14, 1969 (57)
- Apia, Samoa
- Actor, director and writer, also producer
- 10 on MovieCove · 18 credits in all
What are Oscar Kightley's films like?
Across their 8 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Self and Bonds.
Themes
What they feel like to watch
Ironic 0 · Wry 0 · Earnest 6
Light 6 · Serious 0 · Dark 0
A split, not a type: Grounded 3 · Stylized 2 · Heightened 1
A split, not a type: Gentle 3 · Charged 2 · Intense 1
Steady 4 · Shifting 2 · Whiplash 0
Straight-faced 0 · Some laughs 2 · Funny 4
Slow burn 0 · Even-paced 5 · Relentless 1
Casual 5 · Engaged 1 · Full focus 0
Easy watch 3 · Affecting 3 · Heavy 0
Resolved 6 · Open-ended 0 · Ambiguous 0
Roles they play
Usually the Ally: 2 of 4 analyzed roles.
- Allyas Albert in Samoan Wedding (2006)
- Heroas Albert in Sione's 2: Unfinished Business (2012)
- Heraldas PC Andy Tappert in Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016)
- Allyas Tavita in Next Goal Wins (2023)
Moods and endings
- Happy4
- Bittersweet4
AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.
Where can I watch Oscar Kightley's films?
As of October 24, 2026, 7 of their 10 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service.
Subscription and free streaming for Oscar Kightley's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.
Filmography
18 credits, 10 with a MovieCove page; 3 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.
Ms. X(2026)
Midcredits score: 34th percentile of all shows
Time Bandits(2024)
Midcredits score: 17th percentile of all shows
Next Goal Wins(2023)
Midcredits score: 57th percentile of all films
Duckrockers (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2022)
Dawn Raid(2021)
Midcredits score: 86th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)Third Term (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2020)
The Breaker Upperers(2018)
Midcredits score: 41st percentile of all films
Midcredits score: 76th percentile of all shows
Moana(2016)
Midcredits score: 96th percentile of all films
Midcredits score: 98th percentile of all films
Tom's Dairy (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2013)
Aroha Bridge (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2013)
Harry (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2013)
Midcredits score: 50th percentile of all films
Super City (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2011)
Samoan Wedding(2006)
Midcredits score: 61st percentile of all films
Made in Taiwan (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2006)
bro'Town (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2004)
Career shape
Star power in the 89th percentile of 239,109 people with a billed film role, over a full career of 17 titles from 2004 to 2026; peak year 2015.
Film career
Peak 2015 · steadily prominent in film for years. Film roles by billing, audience size and rating; 25+ votes. A show carries a single first-air date, so shows are not on the curve.
- 2006Screen debut· Sione's Wedding
- 2006First top-billed film· Sione's Wedding
Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored.
How do Oscar Kightley's films land?
Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 61st percentile, the median of all 7; across their 6 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 75th percentile for acclaim.
- 75th and up4
- 50th to 74th3
- 25th to 49th2
- Below 25th1
Shape of the crowd
5 of their 10 titles are Mixed.
- Universally Loved2
- Cult Classic1
- Crowd Pleaser2
- Mixed5
Reviewers score the acting 69/100 in their films, across 6 reviewed titles; fans 75, detractors 53. The element that speaks to their work as an actor.
Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.
Is Oscar Kightley's work okay for kids?
Across a limited sample of up to 3 MovieCove titles with content scores.
Severity 0–100 from the Content Guide. Categories with under 10 votes on a title are not counted.
Who does Oscar Kightley work with?
People who share at least 2 of Oscar Kightley's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Robbie Magasiva shares the most, 3.
Directors
- Taika WaititiShared titles: Next Goal Wins (2023), Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016)See all 2 shared titles with Taika Waititi
Writers
- James GriffinShared titles: Sione's 2: Unfinished Business (2012), Samoan Wedding (2006)See all 2 shared titles with James Griffin
Actors
- Robbie MagasivaShared titles: Ms. X (2026), Sione's 2: Unfinished Business (2012), Samoan Wedding (2006)See all 3 shared titles with Robbie Magasiva
- Rachel HouseShared titles: Next Goal Wins (2023), Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016), Moana (2016)See all 3 shared titles with Rachel House
- David FaneShared titles: Next Goal Wins (2023), Sione's 2: Unfinished Business (2012)See all 2 shared titles with David Fane
- Heto Ah HiShared titles: Sione's 2: Unfinished Business (2012), Samoan Wedding (2006)See all 2 shared titles with Heto Ah Hi
Cinematographers and editors
- Marty SmithShared titles: Ms. X (2026), Sione's 2: Unfinished Business (2012)See all 2 shared titles with Marty Smith
- Lachlan MilneShared titles: Next Goal Wins (2023), Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016)See all 2 shared titles with Lachlan Milne
- Tom EaglesShared titles: Next Goal Wins (2023), Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016)See all 2 shared titles with Tom Eagles
- Yana GorskayaShared titles: Next Goal Wins (2023), Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016)See all 2 shared titles with Yana Gorskaya
Producers
- Bailey MackeyShared titles: All or Nothing: New Zealand All Blacks (2018), Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016)See all 2 shared titles with Bailey Mackey
- John BarnettShared titles: Sione's 2: Unfinished Business (2012), Samoan Wedding (2006)See all 2 shared titles with John Barnett
- Paul DavisShared titles: Sione's 2: Unfinished Business (2012), Samoan Wedding (2006)See all 2 shared titles with Paul Davis